There are birthdays. And then, there are birthdays when you move to a new age bracket when filling in online forms. Bye, ‘40–44’. Hello, ‘45–54’. To my early-teen self, listening to Gish, Debut and Black Sunday back in the nineties, the concept of turning 45 felt about as relevant as…

How healing from ACL surgery helped me finally heal from burnout, too. — Today is exactly two years since I had ACL replacement surgery. A lot has changed since then. I was living in Orange County, California. I was in an unhappy marriage. My husband was away for three months for work, so I was mainly alone. Luckily, the surgery was on my…

The surprising results of my own assessment — and why I’m proud to be a heart-centered leader. — On a flight from Sydney to Amsterdam, I read the incredible new book, ‘Head & Heart: The Art of Modern Leadership’ by Dr. Kirstin Ferguson AM. Then, we had the privilege of interviewing her on the We Are Human Leaders podcast. As we prepared to speak to her, I reread…

Why friends form a core part of our identity — and why this kind of intimacy matters — In the English language, the word ‘friend’ is used as a catch-all term for people we have met over the years. We use it for anyone from our most intimate relationships to someone we hung out at high school with two decades ago. I want to get more granular. I’ve…

Why we assume, how it harms us — and how to become more mindful of assumptions — As humans and as leaders we constantly make assumptions: we draw on our past experiences to find patterns in how the world works. Susan David refers to our mind as a meaning-making machine. Our minds use assumptions to make sense of the billions of bits of stimuli and sensory information…

The power of embracing ‘yes, and’ rather than ‘either/or’ thinking. — Our natural human tendency is to categorize things and events as either ‘good’ or ‘bad’. It feels incongruous to entertain two or more conflicting notions at once. And yet, there is liberation in embracing paradox. In holding space for more than one truth to exist at once. To me, embracing…

The 5 words I’m focusing on for the year ahead — It might sound weird, but 2022 was one of my favorite years so far. Returning to the Netherlands has proved to be one of my all-time best decisions. I became co-Director at Human Leaders, a movement of amazing people who are changing what work looks and feels like. I’ve researched…

Why my return to Amsterdam feels like anything but regression. — I’ve always been slightly allergic to the idea of moving back to somewhere I’ve lived before. The metaphor is silly and simple: Returning seemed to imply regression, perhaps even failure or weakness. And yet, moving back to the Netherlands one year ago was one of the best moves I’ve ever…

How I’m spending my first day as a divorcée, and the moment a Dutch word blew my mind. — In therapy in California last year, session after session, one word kept springing to my mind. Unhelpfully, it was in Dutch. “Wegcijferen.” My therapist gave a look of calm bemusement. “Can you tell me what that is in English?” I had to google translate it. The word that came up…